I'm back from the dead
Posted 01:37 PM, January 02, 2008, by luciadvmIt has been forever since I have had a chance to write... Such is life right now, waaaay too busy, and not enough time to attend to fun projects like the blog.
On the job front, things are finally coming around. It is interesting what evolution my planned career path has undergone throughout the course of my fellowship. I think this is true of almost all grad students and postdocs though. It is a critical juncture in life, to soul search and determine what we really want personally, professionally, geographically, etc. I have really latched on to the concept of working in the medical device industry. It is a perfect marriage of my clinical and research background, my interest in the biomedical field, my desire to make life better for people, and to contribute to medical advances.
The application process has been extraordinarily frustrating. Many places are laying off right now, so the market is flooded with *experienced* candidates. So many of these places don't even respond to the application, even after I follow up ad nauseum. Also, for many places, it takes about 6 months (or longer) from the time you apply to the time you are offered a job. So, my advice to everyone who will be seeking employment in the future is, start looking a year in advance! It takes weeks to come up with jobs that you would even want to apply for, and you can't count on your first or even 20th application being the successful one. So, figure out what you want to do and plan early! Also, rather than soul searching for what you want to do with your life and then looking for a job, I would recommend using the job search process as a tool for soul searching. By applying to jobs, you find out more about what they offer, what they don't offer, and in turn, get a better grasp of what your real needs are, and what is not negotiable in your life. This means you are less far behind in your job application process, and will allow you to get a better grasp of what these jobs really *are*. You can then start to target your search a little more effectively, because you will know yourself better, and better understand what you are reading when you log on to company X's website and read a vague or less-than-clear job description.
I have discovered that project management is a great job fit for me. I don't have to be *at* the bench, but rather, get to coordinate and oversee projects--one of my strengths. I also get a lot more interpersonal interaction that way. Coming from veterinary medicine, where you may literally have contact with 40-50 or more people today (between patient updates, appointments, interactions with staff and colleagues, etc), I miss people! Lab work is too isolated for me.
I have found a great company for which I would love to work, but now need to keep my fingers crossed that I will get the position. It is a device consulting firm, so I would get to work with several other device companies, rather than focusing my whole life on one product. Perfect for my preference to work in a constantly changing, fast paced environment!
I will retain my position as Chair of Policy for the National Postdoctoral Association. This will allow me to continue to my work for this fantastic organization. It will also allow me to know that I am still making great contributions towards the research enterprise, by enhancing and improving life for young scientists nationwide.
More to come... Hopefully, my next post says something to the effect that I have a job!
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